Kung Fu Panda
Today, I'm talking about Kung Fu Panda.
My son has recently started getting into it again.
I thought I knew this movie, 'Kung Fu Panda,' well enough since I'd seen it many times and caught glimpses of it while my son was watching it before, but
watching it again, it's actually quite profound.
It made me realize that it's not just a comedy action movie!!
My son laughs out loud every time he watches Kung Fu Panda.
Because of that, I just thought of it as a story with funny reactions.
However.
When I watched it properly, it gave me a lot to think about.
I wrote about 'Flying Colors' the other day.
Ah-chan only looked at her own child.
I think she only believed in her own child.
No matter how much she was mocked by her husband, looked at coldly by society, or told harsh words by teachers.
Ah-chan protected her child with all her might.
That is not something you can do easily.
I was impressed by Ah-chan's greatness in believing in her child, but it's not something that can be done easily.
I don't think I could do it.
At such a time, my son watches this 'Kung Fu Panda' over and over again.
Then, a message about 'believing' came from 'Kung Fu Panda' too...
Oh my...
I see.
It made me realize that this is what raising a child is all about.
I'm going to include some spoilers.
Don't you dare say, 'Are you spoiling it again?'
The one chosen by Master Oogway is Po, a lazy and timid panda. Po, who has more passion for kung fu than anyone else, becomes an apprentice to the master, Master Shifu.
If you only read this part, those who haven't seen it might wonder what it's about, so I'll explain it briefly.
Po is a fat and lazy giant panda.
That Po was chosen as the 'Dragon Warrior.'
Po's master is Master Shifu, a red panda.
Master Shifu's master is Master Oogway, a tortoise.
Master Shifu had five students, and while one might have expected one of those five to become the 'Dragon Warrior,' a fat panda who had never trained suddenly appeared.
Moreover, he had a habit of being lazy.
Therefore, Master Shifu didn't believe in him and didn't know how to raise Po.
Because of a certain event, Master Shifu visits his master, Master Oogway.
The lines Master Oogway says at that time are incredibly good.
What he says are lines you often hear, like 'There is no good or bad news' or 'There are no accidents in this world.'
And then, he says to Master Shifu,
"You must let go of the illusion of control."
That line.
I feel like this also applies to raising children.
In parenting, we often find ourselves thinking, 'How should I raise this child?' or 'I have to make sure I raise them properly.' That in itself might not be a bad thing, but sometimes we end up becoming parents who are trying to turn a tomato into a melon.
That in itself might not be a bad thing, but sometimes we end up becoming parents who are trying to turn a tomato into a melon.
Master Oogway uses a peach tree as an analogy, saying that no matter how much you wish for apples or oranges, it will only bear peaches.
To this, Master Shifu retorts that a peach cannot defeat an opponent.
Master Oogway says it can.
"If you guide them, nurture them, and believe in them."
At that point, Master Shifu asks for the method, asking 'How?', but Master Oogway's only answer is, 'You just need to believe.'
This made me realize that this must be the secret to parenting.
I want to do this, I want to do that, I want to do this for them, I should do this, it must be this way.
Such things always accompany parenting.
I don't intend to control my child, nor do I intend to turn a tomato into a melon. I don't intend to wish for apples or oranges from a peach tree.
I don't intend to, but I might be doing so unconsciously.
Or rather, the moment I think 'I want to do this' or 'I want to do that,' I am trying to make things go my way, and by holding onto the illusion of the child's potential, I am failing to acknowledge them as the tomato or peach they truly are, instead saying 'You are a melon' or 'You are an apple,' trying to bring them under my control.
This 'illusion of a child's potential' is what's troublesome.
Thinking, 'This child is capable of more!', I try to raise them within the scope of my own rules and knowledge.
But parenting doesn't go that smoothly.
Children do not turn out the way parents want them to.
I think the more you try to do for them, the less it works out.
There is only one thing a parent can do.
Believe in the child.
That is all.
How simple.
And yet, how difficult...
A child's journey begins with 'Who am I?'
Or rather, there are many adults who still don't know who they are.
I, for one, am one of them.
Perhaps that is why I am searching for myself through this note.
Just kidding.
Maybe I didn't write anything that deep...😄
Po also learns who he really is.
That moment with Po is also a highlight.
Children can laugh out loud, and adults can laugh while thinking a little more deeply.
That is the kind of work 'Kung Fu Panda' is.
You can watch 1 through 3 on Netflix.
If you have Netflix and are interested, please give it a watch.
Even though I've spoiled so much.
But this is just my own personal interpretation, so I think different viewers will have different impressions.
I think it's also fine to rent it from a rental shop.
'Kung Fu Panda 3' was also great.
Thank you for reading until the end😊
Thank you for the happiness🥰